All posts for the month January, 2016

There is a Kickstarter going on until March 1st for these levitating magnetic Bonsai trees. They’re far too pricy for me with the cheapest starter kit going for $200 kickstart donation. Seeing as I’ve yet to keep a normal plant alive in my lifetime I don’t think it’s prudent to spend that much money to attempt to get a floating plant started. Still I think it’s a pretty cool idea. It reminds me of the floating island estates that were featured in “Trash” an episode of Firefly. But why stop at floating estates. Why not write about a floating city or a floating forest. Take inspiration from these plants and write a scene that has a floating land mass in the sky.

For those of you that have been following me for a while you might remember the Blitz, created by Robert Keim, it is a 50-line poem of short phrases and images. This could be a great way to get some variation as far as imagery goes for that list of poetic obsessions I recommended that you all keep. Here are the rules:

Line 1 should be one short phrase or image (like “build a boat”)

Line 2 should be another short phrase or image using the same first word as the first word in Line 1 (something like “build a house”)

Lines 3 and 4 should be short phrases or images using the last word of Line 2 as their first words (so Line 3 might be “house for sale” and Line 4 might be “house for rent”)

Lines 5 and 6 should be short phrases or images using the last word of Line 4 as their first words, and so on until you’ve made it through 48 lines

Line 49 should be the last word of Line 48

Line 50 should be the last word of Line 47

The title of the poem should be three words long and follow this format: (first word of Line 3) (preposition or conjunction) (first word of line 47)

TCR, an independent literary magazine of meaningful new writing, is open to submissions for their upcoming print and web issues. They are reading in the following categories: Poetry (up to 5 poems); Fiction (short stories to novelettes); Creative nonfiction (up to 10,000 words); Translation. Submit online at: https://thecossack.submittable.com/submit. For translations, submit up to five fiction excerpts or poems. The submission site say that the $15 entry fee also pays for a copy of the Winter 2016 issue of The Cossack Review. However the actual spot on the site where you click to submit lists a lower price so that might be something you want to double-check before submitting.

Little Patuxent Review opens for submissions until March 1, 2016. You may submit one fiction piece of no more than 5,000 words, one nonfiction piece of no more than 3,500 words, or a maximum of three poems of up to one hundred lines online: https://littlepatuxentreview.submittable.com/submit. You must specify the genre of the work, your name and pseudonym (if any), the word count (prose only), provide complete contact information, and include a seventy-five-word bio written in the third person. And the best part is that there’s no submission fee!

A while back I posted about a web comic I enjoy called The Misadventures of Tobias and Guy. I’ve found another webcomic of a similar them for any of you that were enjoying that one. Damonikos is also the story of a demon that dates humans but in this one they aren’t in a committed couple but instead it feature a romance between three people. I’m always interested by relationships that go against the norm whether they are fictional or not. So of course a demon that has a boyfriend and a girlfriend is going to be fascinating to me. I’ve added the character sketches below just follow the link above to check the comic out further. In the mean time, write a scene that features a romantic relationship that goes against the norm. How is this relationship different from others? Do the people in the relationship face persecution for the way they choose to express their love?

Write a poem that features the description of an eye. I’m talking an in-depth description don’t just tell me they color. Give us the shape the subtleties in the color. Talk about the dilations of the pupil. Maybe even describe the area around the eye if it is noteworthy in any way. If you’re struggling to describe another person’s eye from memory, spend some time staring at your own eye in the mirror for a while. Try not to let yourself rely on clichés in the description. No using blue as the seas or sky and don’t tell me his eyes are chocolate-brown. Think up comparisons you’ve never heard before.

I watched Ex Machina the other day. The Concept behind the movie is that a programer is brought to a remote location to perform the Turn Test on a potential break through in AI research. The thing is once you’ve created something that is truly thinking for itself it is only a matter of time before you can’t control it anymore. If you like psychological thrillers I think you’ll enjoy this one. Honestly the trailer below is a bit more revealing than I hoped but I even if you guess the ending I think it’s a movie worth watching. Write a scene that involves a character creating something that is beyond their control. It doesn’t have to be an AI if you’re not into the sci-fi angle. We create all sorts of things as humans including more humans both physically and psychologically. In your scene is your protagonist the creator or the creation? Why is the loss of control significant?

Write a poem about getting kicked out of a place or group. Why were you kicked out? Did you actually deserve to be removed from the situation? If so, did you regret your actions? If not, is there a way to prove the injustice? Would you want to be let back in after the experience of being kicked out? How would things be different if you went back?

Etsy has brought us even more bags inspired by books! These ones are all clutch purse style so if you’re the type that needs a large bag you’re gonna be out of luck. But still they’re pretty cute and worth a gander. Check out psBesitos store on Etsy to see the full selection. And while we’re on the subject of bag size think about what size bag your characters would carry. Is your character the type that just needs something that fits the essentials? Or is your character more likely to carry the classic television cliché of an oversize bag that things get lost in? Write a scene that deals with that purse trope. What has been lost in the bottom of that giant bag?

Write a poem about the concept of the rebound relationship after a big breakup. Have you ever had one before? Do you believe they serves a purpose? Is there a moral question to be taken into account if you know that you’re only looking for a rebound? Has a rebound ever turned into something more serious in your experience? How do the feelings of the breakup color the experience of the rebound relationship?